Species – Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanonhttps://www.spnl.org
Strives to conserve biodiversity for the provision of a better quality of life through sustaining sites, habitats, species and peopleMon, 08 Apr 2019 07:11:56 +0000en-US
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3232115779387Hotspots of exploitation: where are species under greatest threat?https://www.spnl.org/hotspots-of-exploitation-where-are-species-under-greatest-threat/
Wed, 03 Apr 2019 07:00:33 +0000https://www.spnl.org/?p=8134A new paper pinpoints global hotspots for unsustainable commercial harvesting of species to prioritise efforts tackling one of the greatest threats to nature.

By Margaret Sessa-Hawkins

By now, almost everyone knows that many rhinoceros species around the world are threatened with extinction because of commercial overexploitation for their horns, which are sold on the black market. Likewise, all pangolin species have been pushed to the brink of extinction, particularly by hunting for their meat and scales. Unsustainable exploitation is the greatest threat to marine species and the second most important threat to terrestrial species (after unsustainable agriculture). But little information is available on where such impacts are concentrated across the world.

A new study, published in Science Advances, has revealed the areas with the greatest concentration of unsustainable commercial harvesting (such as poaching, over-fishing, hunting and collection of plants). It used data on over 4500 threatened and Near Threatened species of birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, fish, invertebrates and plants that are threatened by unsustainable harvesting (including hunting, fishing and logging).

Examples include the Helmeted Hornbill from South-East Asia which is heavily hunted for its remarkable beak, which is carved for decoration or used in traditional medicine. The Dama Gazelle of North Africa is threatened by uncontrolled hunting for food. And many shark species are threatened by targeted fishing and bycatch.

To determine where these threats may be most intense, the authors used data on accessibility to urban areas and transport infrastructure on land, and standardized data on fishing catch rates at sea. They found that the areas likely to be under highest intensity threat cover just 4.3% of the land and 6.1% of the seas, but contain 82% of all species threatened by unsustainable harvesting and over 80% of the ranges of Critically Endangered species threatened by unsustainable harvesting.

“This represents a significant conservation opportunity, as interventions to reduce exploitation rates to sustainable levels in these hotspots would deliver disproportionate conservation benefits” said Dr Stuart Butchart, Chief Scientist at BirdLife International and co-author of the study.

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However, only 16% of these regions are covered by protected areas on land and just 6% at sea.

“There is an urgent need to expand and effectively manage protected areas in these hotspots, alongside broadscale policies to tackle unsustainable fisheries, logging and hunting” added Butchart. Underpinning such efforts is the need for awareness-raising to reduce demand for threatened species, better enforcement of protective laws and strengthening compliance with trade regulation.

Without such responses, we could face many more extinction to fuel humanity’s voracious appetite for animal and plant products.

]]>8134SPNL First Lodge and Hima Farm at Tyrehttps://www.spnl.org/spnl-first-lodge-and-hima-farm-at-tyre/
Sat, 19 May 2018 18:16:31 +0000http://www.spnl.org/?p=7190Since the inception of SPNL in 1984, the Saidi family placed its Tyre residence and gardens at the disposal of SPNL management and staff. It was from this hub the last and most beautiful sandy beach was proclaimed a protected area.

It was from this hub SPNL was able to stop the transfer of sand from this beach through the interference of one of the founders with the Lebanese Army General that this theft was stopped and hundreds of tractors and loaders were confiscated by the Army.

The white-spectacled Bulbul chicks on the safety of Hima Farm at Tyre

It was from this hub SPNL created its first Hima in Ebel Es Saqi at the southern border of Lebanon and which is exactly on the flyway of the migrating birds.

It was from this hub SPNL created the Qoleileh Hima on the Mediterranean beach.

The Tyre lodge is a bird sanctuary for many speeches including the threatened Syrian Serin and Palestinian Sun Bird. The Tyre lodge is being used by SPNL management and staff for meetings and entertaining of guests.

Mohamad Safieldin (C)Mohamad Safieldin (C)

The property has an area of more than fifty thousand square meters planted with avocado trees, Bananas and Citrus trees. The gardens of the residence has a large variety of trees some being flowering trees, plants and bushes as well as a variety of fruit trees which are shared with the birds.

It is strategically situated on the main road to Qana and about two kilometers from the beach reserve of Tyre.

This is the first in a series of Hima farms at the various regions of Lebanon, namely Tyre, Mount-Lebanon, West Beqaa, Central Beqaa, and North Beqaa, Anfeh, and Akkar.
This innovative SPNL/HH International initiative is aiming to sustain Hima farms, farmers, fishermen and the local communities at large, in addition to providing birds and other wildlife safe sanctuaries, as no hunting areas, pesticides and chemical free.
SPNL/HHI works in partnership with the Private sector, International Environment organizations, local and international decision makers and donors to achieve this big dream for Lebanon.

1 million birds are fatally poisoned in Europe each year by ingesting lead shot from expended cartridges. The EU’s European Chemicals Agency is currently considering an EU-wide ban on the use of lead shot for hunting in wetlands. It is running an online public consultation on the issue until 21st December. Join BirdLife Europe and TAKE ACTION!

First it attacks their digestive system, and then they slowly and painfully starve to death – this is what happens when birds ingest lead…this is the ‘long goodbye’. But the only thing we should say goodbye to is lead.

Many wild bird species rely on small stones known as ‘grit’ to aid digestion; they ingest the grit into their gizzard so they can grind their food more easily. And while evolution knew what it was doing when it adapted a bird’s anatomy to its environment, it was ill-prepared for what happens when a toxic substance enters the scene in a form easily mistakable for grit by birds – lead pellets from shotgun ammunition.

Lead shotgun pellets are often the same size as grit; and in many wetland habitats, where hunting has been prevalent for years, they can be found in abundance, embedded into the sediment fatally beckoning its victims. It is estimated that between 1,400-7,800 tons of lead is released into EU wetlands (including peatlands) each year due to hunting activities.[1]

Nothing says goodbye like lead…

There are very severe knock-on effects for countless iconic wetland species – from the graceful Tundra swan Cygnus columbianus (already Endangered in Europe) to the much beloved Greater flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus. Ducks are the worst affected, with tragic consequences for species such as Northern pintail Anas acuta, Goldeneye Bucephala Clangula and Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula. Paying the highest price is the Common pochard Aythya fuligula – this diving duck whose bright red head caught the attention of Aristotle himself has been found to have the highest prevalence of ingested lead gunshot. But this is not a price it can afford to pay – its rapid decline across its large global range has seen it Red listed by the IUCN as globally Vulnerable.

One million birds are poisoned after ingesting lead shot in Europe each year – this was the grim finding of a scientific study on ‘Lead Poisoning in Wild Birds in Europe and the Regulations Adopted by Different Countries’[2]. The author, Spanish ecotoxicologist Rafael Mateo, assessed the impact of lead shot ingestion on 17 species of European waterfowl based on data collated from across the continent over five decades.

Worse still, this shocking figure does not include predators and scavengers (such as owls and eagles) that are killed as a result of secondary poisoning. When these species eat wounded or dead animals carrying lead shot, they are susceptible to its toxic effects. Even if the lead levels are not enough to kill the predator outright, it is often enough to weaken and disorient it, leaving it more vulnerable in the wild. Raptors that commonly prey upon waterfowl are particularly at risk: Marsh harriers Circus aeruginosus, White-tailed eagles Haliaeetus albicilla and peregrine falcons Falco peregrinus.

Everyone knows lead is poisonous to all living things. Historically it was prevalent in our daily lives, used in water pipes, car fuel, pencils, paint and children’s toys. Then it became widely known that lead poisoning – be it through ingestion, inhalation or skin exposure – had grave consequences for people, ranging from brain and kidney damage, and potential miscarriage to impeded neural development in children. It’s a scandal that endangered birds are threatened by lead when we’ve had the good sense to ban it from our own everyday lives.

Lead shot has been banned in Denmark since 1996, so we already have over two decades of evidence to prove that such measures are effective. In more recent years, other countries such as the Netherlands have followed. It now lies on the shoulders of the EU to take us forward and make lead shot a thing of the past.

Have your say – Tell the EU to #BanLead

The EU’s European Chemical’s Agency is currently considering a ban on the use of lead shot for hunting in wetlands. It is running an online public consultation on the issue until 21st December. BirdLife Europe has been leading the call to ban lead shot for many years. It now calls on all nature lovers to seize this moment to save one million birds by filling in the public consultation and tweeting your support for our #BanLead Campaign.

BirdLife is proud to announce that Volume 2 of the Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World is now available to purchase. Published by Lynx Edicions in association with HBW and BirdLife International, Volume 2 chronicles the world’s passerines (perching birds), and completes the most exhaustive illustrated checklist of birds ever compiled, with stunning, full-colour portraits of all the world’s 10,965 extant species.

As part of our commitment to this birder’s tome, BirdLife’s science team performed a rigorous taxonomy review of all the world’s birds, and discovered that previously we had underestimated the world’s avian diversity by as much as 10%. Many birds previously thought races, or sub-species of other birds, were actually fully-fledged species in their own right.

As a result of these studies, over 1,000 new bird species were recognised during the compilation of the Illustrated Checklist, 10 of the most eye-catching of which are featured below.

Meet Europe’s newest, and rarest, resident bird. Previously considered the same species as the larger, and far more common, Tenerife Blue Chaffinch Fringilla teydea, the Gran Canaria relative makes its Red List debut in the Endangered category, as forest fires on the island have decimated this rare finch’s preferred Canary pine habitats. Future fires could prove disastrous.

Is the ‘Grey Ghost’ still haunting New Zealand’s South Island? Distinguished from its North Island relative by its orange (rather than blue) wattles, this arboreal forest bird has not been reliably spotted since 2007, which explains its Red List categorisation as Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct). But given that the last verified sighting before 2007 was in 1967, however, it’s perhaps a little too soon to stop believing in ghosts…

Look familiar? It should do – this Saudi Arabia endemic was, until 2016, considered a race of the famous Eurasian Magpie Pica pica. However, unlike its widespread relative, which has a range that spans Ireland to Vietnam, just 135 pairs of Asir Magpie remain, all of which are restricted to juniper forest in the valleys of south-west Saudi Arabia. It is difficult to distinguish visually from the Eurasian Magpie (although there is marginally more black plumage on its back), but its call is very different: a loud ‘quaynk-quaynk’ sound.

The Brown-headed Nuthatch Sitta pusilla is a common species throughout much of the southern and eastern parts of the USA, but the much rarer race insularis, now recognised as a distinct species, has a much smaller range, confined as it is to the island of Grand Bahama. Aside from location, it can be distinguished from the Brown-headed Nuthatch but its longer, thinner bill and its darker eyestripe.

Previously considered a subspecies of the Madagascar Blue Vanga Cyanolanius madagascarinus, this striking shrike-like bird is still reasonably common on Comoros, but ongoing habitat loss and degradation are contributing to its gradual decline.

Despite living practically on the doorstep of São Paulo, this species was only discovered in 2004. It occupies an area possibly less than two square kilometres, and has already been lost from two sites in the short time since its discovery. Some of the birds were translocated from one of these sites ahead of the construction of a dam upstream that wiped them out. Talking of South American dams…

Newly described from north-west Colombia and newly-acquainted to the Red List’s Endangered club, the construction of the Ituango Dam, an embankment dam on the Cauca River, could wipe out over half its known dry forest habitat.

This stocky myna, possibly the largest extant member of the starling family, is prized for its talking ability and this has led to its demise. Restricted to the Banyak and Nias islands of Indonesia, wild populations have seemingly been almost entirely wiped out by visiting bird trappers. This freshly-split species was considered extinct in the wild until 2015, when Czech zoologists discovered a new population.

Stick in a pin in the most wild, untamed part of the African rainforests you can find on a map, and you will have stuck a pin right through last known whereabouts of this elusive warbler. It is known only from three specimens taken in montane vegetation on the ultra-remote Lendu Plateau in Democratic Republic of Congo. Some habitat still remains and the species may still be extant, but civil war prevents us from finding out for sure. Until then, it is officially classified as Critically Endangered.

If you’re reading this list last thing at night, then you’re probably going to want to keep the lights on. This bloodthirsty Galapagos finch, endemic to the islands of Wolf and Darwin, was always considered a very distinct subspecies of the Sharp-beaked Ground-finch Geospiza difficilis, not least because of its rather ghoulish feeding habits. This aptly-named species occasionally pecks at the skin of other birds, such as boobies, until a wound opens so it can drink its victim’s blood. It is believed the Vampire Ground-finch developed its taste for blood to compensate for the scarcity of resources on the arid islands it calls home.

]]>5756Meet the animal that’s rarer – and cuter – than a pandahttps://www.spnl.org/meet-the-animal-thats-rarer-and-cuter-than-a-panda/
Fri, 10 Apr 2015 19:30:40 +0000http://www.spnl.org/?p=3805Native to a remote region of China, this tiny mammal, known as the Ili pika, doesn’t know it’s a member of an endangered species – and neither do most people.

Rarer – and some would argue cuter- than the panda, there are less than 1,000 of these teddy bear-like creatures living in the Tianshan mountain range in the Xinjiang region of northwestern China, says conservationist Li Weidong.

Li discovered the pika, formally known as Ochotona iliensis, in 1983 and named it after his hometown, Ili.

Last July, Li spotted and photographed the elusive creature for the first time since the early 1990s. He estimates its numbers have declined by almost 70% since its discovery.

“I discovered the species, and I watched as it became endangered,” he told CNN. “If it becomes extinct in front of me, I’ll feel so guilty.”

In 2008, the animal was listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature but there’s no official organization or team dedicated studying or protecting it, according to Li.

Shrinking habitat

The mammal, only 20 centimeters long, lives on sloping bare rock faces and feeds on grasses at high elevations. Li says the pika’s habitat has been affected by global warming.

Due to rising temperatures, glaciers have receded and the altitude of permanent snow has risen in the Tianshan mountains, forcing the pikas to gradually retreat to mountain tops, Li said.

Ili pikas were originally found at elevations between 3,200 to 3,400 meters, he said. Now they have retreated to elevations of 4,100 meters.

“They have nowhere else to retreat,” he added.

It’s also a solitary animal and is not as vocal as other pika species, so if predators are near, Ili pikas are not able to alert each other, Li said.

]]>3805The Book of Eggs: A Lifesize Guide to the Eggs of Six Hundred of the World’s Bird Specieshttps://www.spnl.org/the-book-of-eggs-a-lifesize-guide-to-the-eggs-of-six-hundred-of-the-worlds-bird-species/
https://www.spnl.org/the-book-of-eggs-a-lifesize-guide-to-the-eggs-of-six-hundred-of-the-worlds-bird-species/#respondSun, 06 Apr 2014 11:19:28 +0000http://www.spnl.org/?p=2598Featuring new photography from Chicago’s renowned Field Museum, The Book of Eggs explores 600 examples at actual size, alongside pattern details, clutch images, breeding range maps, and engravings of all the birds. A table of field-guide information identifies order, family, breeding range, nesting habitat, nest characteristics, and conservation status. This accompanies an expert narrative revealing the latest research and thinking on social structure; reproductive strategies; egg colour, maculation, and size; and incubation behaviour. Arranged taxonomically, according to evolutionary relationships, The Book of Eggs brings to light intriguing aspects of breeding biology. The result is a visual delight and an essential reference for every bird enthusiast, natural historian, and conservationist.

From the brilliantly green and glossy eggs of the Elegant Crested Tinamou—said to be among the most beautiful in the world—to the small brown eggs of the house sparrow that makes its nest in a lamppost and the uniformly brown or white chickens’ eggs found by the dozen in any corner grocery, birds’ eggs have inspired countless biologists, ecologists, and ornithologists, as well as artists, from John James Audubon to the contemporary photographer Rosamond Purcell. For scientists, these vibrant vessels are the source of an array of interesting topics, from the factors responsible for egg coloration to the curious practice of “brood parasitism,” in which the eggs of cuckoos mimic those of other bird species in order to be cunningly concealed among the clutches of unsuspecting foster parents. The Book of Eggs introduces readers to eggs from six hundred species—some endangered or extinct—from around the world and housed mostly at Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History. Organized by habitat and taxonomy, the entries include newly commissioned photographs that reproduce each egg in full color and at actual size, as well as distribution maps and drawings and descriptions of the birds and their nests where the eggs are kept warm. Birds’ eggs are some of the most colorful and variable natural products in the wild, and each entry is also accompanied by a brief description that includes evolutionary explanations for the wide variety of colors and patterns, from camouflage designed to protect against predation, to thermoregulatory adaptations, to adjustments for the circumstances of a particular habitat or season. Throughout the book are fascinating facts to pique the curiosity of binocular-toting birdwatchers and budding amateurs alike. Female mallards, for instance, invest more energy to produce larger eggs when faced with the genetic windfall of an attractive mate. Some seabirds, like the cliff-dwelling guillemot, have adapted to produce long, pointed eggs, whose uneven weight distribution prevents them from rolling off rocky ledges into the sea.

A visually stunning and scientifically engaging guide to six hundred of the most intriguing eggs, from the pea-sized progeny of the smallest of hummingbirds to the eggs of the largest living bird, the ostrich, which can weigh up to five pounds, The Book of Eggs offers readers a rare, up-close look at these remarkable forms of animal life.

]]>https://www.spnl.org/the-book-of-eggs-a-lifesize-guide-to-the-eggs-of-six-hundred-of-the-worlds-bird-species/feed/02598Give bees a chancehttps://www.spnl.org/give-bees-a-chance/
https://www.spnl.org/give-bees-a-chance/#respondWed, 28 Aug 2013 14:19:57 +0000http://www.spnl.org/?p=2032Bees are the world’s most important pollinators, bar none. Increasingly, the global community recognizes that their demise is critical – to both human livelihoods2,3 and the health of ecosystems1. Honeybee declines are even featured on the cover story of Time Magazine in this year’s August 19th issue, a rare feat for an insect!

But long before, the Convention on Biological Diversity took note of pollinator declines and established the International Pollinator Initiative in 2000.

The initiative recognizes, quite correctly, that honeybees are not the only pollinators in town, or on the farm. Indeed a recent publication by Garibaldi et al. 20132 highlighted the critical, irreplaceable role that wild bees play in agriculture. But, we still need more information on managed and wild bee pollination services, and how they can best be managed in synchrony to provide optimal pollination services. We need to know more specific information on the extent and causes of pollinator declines, so that we know where we need to focus on reversing such trends.

The Science of Pollination Services in Agricultural Development

Pollination is one of 17 recognized ecosystem services. The production of over 75% of the world’s most important crops and 35% of the food produced is dependent upon animal pollination1. The services provided by pollination have significant economic value as well. In the EU, insect pollination has an estimated value of 15 billion euros per year2.

Yet there have been mounting questions about how relevant pollination may be to agricultural development and food security. The vast majority of studies of pollination services to crops have been carried out in Europe and North America; and certainly the problems we know to impact pollinators most severely – a high dependence on agricultural chemicals and monocropped landscapes offering little diet diversity to pollinators – are typical features of industrialised, Northern agriculture.But this concept, of pollination deficits being primarily a concern of Northern, intensified agriculture is being put to a test.

When pollination was recognized as a global concern, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) was able to coordinate the development and implementation of a global project on pollination services. The project was developed in collaboration with seven developing countries: Brazil, Ghana, India, Kenya, Nepal, Pakistan and South Africa.

One of the priorities of this project – as identified by the participating countries – was to develop a protocol to identify and assess pollination deficits from a farmer’s perspective, led by FAO and the Institut National de la Agronomique in Avignon, France.

It has been applied in the seven participating countries, and the results so far suggest that management practices to ensure abundant pollinators can increase fruit sets in mango orchards in Ghana by 35%, improve the production of mustard seed in Nepal by 25%,and increase the canola oil content in rapeseed by 8% in Brazil.

How to assess ecosystem services?

In 2013, the new Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) came into force, the Biodiversity equivalent of the Nobel-Prize winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. While IPBES is working out its working modalities, the Government of Norway has taken a look at the pollination deficit protocol developed by FAO, and suggested that a better understanding of how to apply it could give insight into the future work of IPBES.

Thus, the Norwegian Directorate of Nature Management has supported FAO to prepare trainers (Hien included), to train national research partners in five additional countries: Argentina, China, Colombia, Indonesia and Zimbabwe.

As IPBES is intended to be a science-knowledge-policy interface, indigenous and local communities were invited to give input through the Indigenous Partnership on Agrobiodiversity and Food Sovereignty. The project seeks to provide input to IPBES on how indigenous and local communities might differently understand and assess pollinators and pollination services from a purely scientific approach; and also how they will apply the protocol to coffee farms run by indigenous communities in southern India.

Using a common, simple protocol that can be applied and adapted to a multitude of local conditions and systems could be one way for IPBES to approach the assessment of ecosystem services. But what can it add to the value of local assessments?

Meta-analyze that!

Comparing global trends from local assessments in a meta-analysis would be very helpful in gaining a global perspective on pollination deficits. Meta-analysis, could provide a powerful lens through which to analyze the conclusions and outcomes from FAO’s pollination deficit protocol. There is also certainly a need to bring the best research findings to the scrutiny of policy-makers.

Meta-analyzers from around the world held a “working workshop” this past July, in São Paulo, Brazil, where participants prepared an analytical framework and the datasets from eleven countries and eleven cropping systems (from raspberries, to rapeseed, clover, pumpkin and more) for a meta-analysis of pollination deficits.

Questions for Policy Makers

The questions that we believe the combined datasets may be able to address in some measure, are:

How is crop yield related to the number of hives per ha and/or wild-pollinator assemblage (density, richness, evenness, etc.)?

How is the wild-pollinator affected by landscape composition and configuration (e.g. distance to natural habitats) and/or management practices?

How does pollinator and yield stability vary with landscape composition, configuration and management?

How does pollinator density, diversity and the benefits of wild and managed pollinators interact with climatic conditions across years?

How do pollinator assemblages vary across geographic regions and agronomic systems?

The results? Unfortunately, they aren’t that easy to churn out. It will take time, effort and a lot of statistical prowess to draw conclusions from such a large global dataset.

But we have committed to bringing the preliminary results to a meeting of principal researchers and policy makers from a number of the participating countries this September in Kenya. Our intention is to have researchers, policymakers and representatives of indigenous people sit down together and think about possible policy responses to the trends revealed from these questions.

It is too simple to only say “so many hives are needed per hectare for good production”. The number of people keeping hives around the world is in decline; wild bees are often better pollinators than managed bees; pesticides and loss of natural habitat heavily impacts the populations of bees. Once we know the science, it is in the hands of policymakers and the general public to commit to goal-oriented solutions.

The results from applying the deficit protocol in many sites around the world will be published soon in a special issue of the Journal of Pollination Ecology.

Meta-analyzers at the Sao Paolo conference included: Antonio Saraiva at the University of Sao Paulo and the research center on biodiversity and computing (BioComp); Lucas Garibaldi at the Universidad Nacional de Rio Negro and Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas in Argentina, lead author of the recent Science meta-analysis article on the importance of wild pollinators for crop pollination, and Luisa Carvalheiro, of University of Leeds and Naturalis in the Netherlands.

About the Authors:

Barbara Gemmill-Herren is a Programme Specialist and Focal Point for the International Pollinator Initiative at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). She is also a member of the CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystem’s (WLE) Ecosystem Services and Resilience Advisory Group. Hien Ngo is a PhD student at York University (Toronto, Canada) and is a consultant to FAO on pollination matters.

This blog is part of the Agriculture and Ecosystems Blog’s month-long series on Ecosystem Services.

]]>https://www.spnl.org/give-bees-a-chance/feed/02032Epinephelus marginatus: A native fish species in Lebanonhttps://www.spnl.org/epinephelus-marginatus-a-native-fish-species-in-lebanon/
https://www.spnl.org/epinephelus-marginatus-a-native-fish-species-in-lebanon/#respondWed, 28 Aug 2013 13:16:20 +0000http://www.spnl.org/?p=2028The Dusky Grouper or Epinephelus marginatusis a native fish species in Lebanon, that is categorized as “Endangered” as part of the IUCN Red List for globally threatened species. The E. marginatus lives at sea depths ranging between 8 and 300 m, mainly in rocky reefs, and it is considered as a hermaphrodite, that is it changes from female to male. Its current global population is declining primarily due to overfishing, in addition to its slow growth rate that amplifies the effect of overexploiting it.
]]>https://www.spnl.org/epinephelus-marginatus-a-native-fish-species-in-lebanon/feed/02028Iris Sofarana: A Species Endemic to Lebanon Only!https://www.spnl.org/iris-sofarana-a-species-endemic-to-lebanon-only/
https://www.spnl.org/iris-sofarana-a-species-endemic-to-lebanon-only/#respondWed, 28 Aug 2013 13:10:53 +0000http://www.spnl.org/?p=2025The Iris sofarana is a unique plant species from the Iris genus that is endemic only to Lebanon, more specifically the high-altitude mountains of Lebanon. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has not assessed this species yet, but preliminary studies conducted by the Royal Botanic Gardens, suggest that it is highly threatened due to unsustainable grazing, agricultural activities, and construction activities. Another important threat to the Iris sofarana is the beauty of its flower, making it prone to uncontrolled collection by locals and plant traders. Hence, this prevents the flower seeds to settle in the natural environment, thus reducing its regeneration rate.
]]>https://www.spnl.org/iris-sofarana-a-species-endemic-to-lebanon-only/feed/02025Lesser White-fronted Goose: A Species Under Threathttps://www.spnl.org/lesser-white-fronted-goose-a-species-under-threat/
https://www.spnl.org/lesser-white-fronted-goose-a-species-under-threat/#respondSun, 17 Mar 2013 15:37:15 +0000http://www.spnl.org/?p=1295The smallest goose species in the genus Anser, the Lesser White-fronted Goose (Anser erythropus) is ranked as globally threatened, being recognized as Vulnerable by the IUCN and ranked by BirdLife International as ‘SPEC 1’ within Europe, denoting a European species of global conservation concern. It is listed in Annex 1 of the European Council Directive on the conservation of Wild Birds (79/409/EEC 1979, 2009/147/EC 2009), in Column A of the Action Plan under the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) and in Annex II ‘Strictly protected species’ of the Bern Convention.

Lesser White-fronted Geese are long-distance Palearctic migrants, currently breeding discontinuously in the sub-arctic zone from northern Fennoscandia to eastern Siberia. Their wintering and staging areas as well as migration routes are only partially known. The global population of the Lesser White-fronted Goose has declined rapidly since the middle of the 20th century. The decrease in numbers has led to a fragmentation of the breeding range.

In addition, Sweden supplemented/re-introduced a Lesser White-fronted Goose population in the early 1980s by releasing captive-bred geese together with Barnacle Goose foster parents. The Swedish population follows a modified flyway to wintering grounds in the Netherlands.

Although the Lesser White-fronted Goose is legally protected in almost all range states along the flyway, hunting remains the main threat to the species. Many range states lack the necessary human capacity and financial resources to effectively implement bans on hunting and provide for appropriate protection of key sites. In many cases key sites are still unknown and hence remain unprotected. Poaching and accidental hunting are the main contributers to the decline of the species, but disturbance from hunting in general is also a problem. Hunting pressure is considered to be particularly severe at staging and wintering sites along the so-called eastern migration route (Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and the Middle East) as well as in South East Europe, particularly in Greece.

The Look-AlikeDilemma

The implementation of effective measures to reduce the threat from hunting is particularly challenging due to the fact that the Lesser White-fronted Goose is very difficult to distinguish from its close relative the Greater White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons), which is a common quarry species across its entire range. The two species often migrate together in mixed flocks, making it challenging for trained ornithologists – let alone hunters – to distinguish between them, particularly in flight.

Measures to address the significant threat from hunting include the identification of the key staging and wintering sites used by Lesser White-fronted Geese and the assessment of the hunting pressure at these sites. If deemed feasible, a ban on all goose hunting at such key sites when Lesser White-fronted Geese are present should be installed and enforced. Measures also include awareness-raising amongst hunters and local communities on the threatened status of the species. Where possible, efforts should be made to engage local hunters and hunting organizations in assisting with the monitoring and conservation of rare geese. Some range states are for example experimenting with voluntary red-light systems for hunters, via which hunters are alerted when Lesser White-fronted Geese are present in their area, with the hope that this will lead to a reduction in the accidental shooting of the species. For more information on the identification of Lesser White-fronted Geese please visit the LIFE project website hosted by WWF Finland.

Habitat Loss

The loss of natural habitats – particularly at crucial sites along the migration routes – is thought to be an additional serious threat to the species. Some studies indicate that Lesser White-fronted Geese are so-called habitat specialists, prefering more natural habitats to cultivated high-yield agricultural lands and being more picky feeders than, for example, other goose species.

Possible solutions include identifying those sites that are critical for the survival of the species and guaranteeing adequate protection of those sites including the implementation of habitat management measures. Ensuring that key sites along the migration routes remain intact and that they are adequately protected and managed will also help in hindering the geese from straying to other un-protected areas.

Predation

Predation is considered one of the main threats in the breeding areas, where the expansion of Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) populations to the north increasingly poses a threat to Lesser White-fronted Geese as well as other species found in the Palearctic such as the Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus). Predation by growing Red fox populations has particularly been identified as a threat to the Fennoscandian sub-population and measures such as the annual culling of Red foxes are being carried out in the repesective range states in an effort to ensure better breeding success of the Lesser White-fronted Geese. There is also thought to be some threat to eggs as well as goslings from seabirds and raptors, however more studies are needed in order to confirm the extent of this threat to the different sub-populations.

Gaps in Key Knowledge

Major gaps in key knowledge concerning the migration routes and critical sites used by the Lesser White-fronted Goose still remain. Conservation efforts in many countries remain hampered due to limited knowledge of the species occurrence. Therefore satellite-tagging efforts and increased monitoring along the flyway remain crucial. Work on the introduction of a common monitoring scheme for the Western Palearctic sub-populations is ongoing, including plans to align monitoring practices amongst range states. In addition, efforts are being made to strengthen the national capacity of key range states to carry out monitoring of Lesser White-fronted Geese.